Connecting low-income renters to housing stabilization services: A field experiment

• In Event: Causal Inference in Public Management

Abstract

Evictions can have serious and long-lasting adverse impacts on health, socio-economic, and education outcomes. In collaboration with a large US city, we are co-designing a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test the effectiveness of behaviorally-informed outreach aimed at connecting low-income tenants to government housing stabilization resources, with the goal of preventing and mitigating evictions.

The government runs many programs to help burdened and housing-insecure renters, including legal assistance programs, short-term emergency rental assistance programs that help renters pay off back owed rent and utility bills, and longer-term rental assistance programs that aim to provide stable, affordable housing for very low-income renters. The primary goal of all of these programs is to increase housing stability and reduce evictions. However, a host of evidence documents large barriers that prevent residents from accessing these types of government programs, even when they are eligible to do so, with disproportionate impacts on racial and ethnic minorities. A large literature in public management and economics examines methods of reducing these barriers across policy contexts. For example, some studies have found that reducing learning and information costs through clear and simple communication can increase enrollment in programs such as health insurance and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, although in some cases information interventions are not enough to increase participation. Yet, overall, there is little experimental evidence on effective methods of connecting renters to housing stability services, nor on whether – or for whom – such programs are effective at reducing evictions.

              This study involves a collaboration with the housing stability office in a large city. Through a multi-year field experiment, we aim to answer four questions: (1) Does timely and targeted informational outreach to tenants facing eviction increase the use of housing stability resources? (2) What type of messaging is most effective at encouraging the use of housing stability resources among residents facing eviction? (3) Does the impact of light-touch interventions aimed at increasing the use of available services differ by population (e.g., by census-tract level race and ethnicity)? (4) Does increasing the use of housing stability resources affect the likelihood of eviction and, if so, for whom (e.g., by census-track level race and ethnicity)?

              To answer these questions, we are co-designing a field experiment that leverages weekly data on eviction filings. Each week, all renters in the partner city who are facing imminent eviction will be randomly assigned to receive one of two informational postcards that direct them to city housing stabilization resources or to a no-communication control group. We will then measure the impact on engagement with the communication, use of housing stabilization services, and evictions.

              While results are forthcoming, this project demonstrates the promise of integrating rigorous methods – in this case, randomized experiments – to examine longstanding public management questions. It also offers a valuable case study in how to design and conduct collaborative field experiments with government that not only advance academic knowledge and literature, but also respond to key policy challenges.

Authors

• Elizabeth Linos, Harvard University
  Presenting Author

• Jessica Lasky-Fink, Harvard University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author

• Heidi Wallace, Harvard University
  Non-Presenting Co-Author